Video: The Guts Behind The Glory - Micayla Gatto

 If Red Bull can get skydivers to the edge of space, transporting someone to a WC race series should be no problem!

 I´m proud that i´m the first who gave you props. That´s one good point!

 its the same with every sport though, maybe with the exception of volley ball... the women always get paid less and win less money

 She definitely deserves a better ride to races for how good she is doing

 Good, thx for leaving, way to be disrespectful elanto.

 Micayla! 3

 Better artist than me.

 elanto show some respect! I would bet that she is a faster rider than you and i know that she is way out of your league!

 quit while you're ahead elanto; the homo cracks ain't flying

 he was never ahead tho...

 more like quit while you are behind

 I met her at crankworx and she loved my dog. I'd be willing to rent him out if you need a wingman...

 worst idea ever mate your dog will receive all of her attention and moreover he won't take away MG friends to leave clarky78 alone with her

 financial support from the government? why would you get support from the government to be a bike racer?

 cause of what Micayla was talking about. about working an 8 hour shift and then trying to get up and go to the gym, or hop on your bike, it can be hard day in and day out.
you did know that most pro athlete's got paid money right?

 Want it or not, athletes represent their country on the international scene when racing. The visibility is some sort of publicity for the governments and some of them give sponsorships to athletes that are good ambassadors that do well on the international scene. Look at the olympics, some countries will hand out 200k$ to athletes who bring back a gold medal... while some countries give next to nothing. Nobody competing on that level would wear a redbull lid if redbull didn't back them up in some way but you can't get rid of your citizenship.

I think it's cool when your government recognizes the efforts you do to be one of the best in your discipline. I remember the story of a female canadian powerlifter who finished 10th in her class at the pekin olympic games. She said she had no sponsors at all, so she had to go to university full time, work, train in her basement with mostly no coach while she competes with people who train full time with full support from a wide array of specialists. Imagine if she had financial support...

 To win races where you represent your country!

Clubs and associations sometimes have subventions from the goverment/province to promote the sport and their best athletes... Taxes are also used for that.

 Yes of course pros get paid and they should they are making their sponsors money but she isn't an Olympic athlete so no I have not heard of a country paying people to play sports. That's what sponsors are for. You chose to make that your life. I'm not sure I'm a fan of the government subsidising athletes or spending tax dollars on that.

 It's not because you have not heard of it that it doesn't exist. I've seen plenty of athletes sponsored by their country/state/province. A lot of athletes don't make a lot of money, so any help they can get often makes a major difference for them. Hell, banks and other corporations get massive subsidies even if they make billions in profits, so why not help out people who represent your country worldwide if it helps them do so?

 I guess it is what it is and cool if countries are willing to do this. I just feel that they, the government, could invest money on more important things like better k-12 education cheaper or free higher education. Feeding the hungry, health care...

 Yeah well I wish they'd do that instead of spying on the entire planet and dropping trillions on the defense budget but it ain't happening...

 true true.

 Sneaky plug right there...

 I think being an artist pays less than being a pro mountain biker. She's got skills fo sho!

 There are far less girls riding and as such it is less competitive. It's easier to win a race if you are female just on the numbers. I'm sure they work just as hard, but the less competitive a sport is the less funding it attracts.

 What about market growth? Micayla sponsors should be using her as not only a brand spokeswoman, but also as a way of getting bigger bikes into the hands of women. Unlike road cycling that seems to market every female rider as slim and perfect fit for lyrca, mountain biking is a much less "image" focused industry.

 More nice trails would mean more people biking so potentially more money in the pockets of bike manufacturers but you don't really see them sponsoring trails all that often... I don't think they care unless an accountant can prove that sponsoring a particular person/event/place will give them a net return or an advantage on the competition.

 I agree with you Matt. However if there is no money invested in paying female athletes there are less likely to want or be able to do it full time. That means less female athletes for girls to look up to so less product sold and a much slower staler growth in the market. Plus they really work damn hard to do what they love doing putting themselves on the line every event, they really deserve it.

 Miriam Nicole - France!! Didn't you notice her new red bull lid this year?